BALER, Aurora, December 18, 2010–A former head of the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC) has been slapped with two criminal charges before the Regional Trial Court here for reportedly spreading pornographic photos of a former Capitol employee taken some two years ago.

The charge in two separate information was filed by Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Jonald Hernandez before RTC Branch 66 Judge Evelyn Turla to the suspected Mr. Jose Doringo who was a former chief of the PDCC, now known as the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Council (PDRRC).

The filing of the twin information which was approved by Provincial Prosecutor Jesse Pimentel, stemmed from a complaint filed middle of this year by a former Capitol employee who was the respondent’s alleged former sexual partner. The victim, described as “ravishing” and in her early 20’s, was assisted by the provincial social welfare and development office.

Doringo was charged with violations of Republic Act 9995, otherwise known as the Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act and RA 9262, also known as the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act.

The woman, in her complaint said that the respondent made her pose in the nude and took obscene photos of her in a room in Barangay Buhangin sometime in 2008. The photos showed the woman smiling and striking a seductive pose completely in the nude – her legs spread wide open – in a bed inside the still undisclosed room.

The sexy photos erupted into a full-blown scandal when it was circulated in mobile phones of various individuals in this town without her knowledge. Because of the scandal, the woman said she suffered from mental and emotional anguish and psychological distress, forcing her to leave her job at the Capitol.

During the clarificatory hearing, Doringo denied the claims of the victim that they were sexual partners and that he was the one who took the photos and circulated the same.

But Hernandez found probable cause to indict Doringo after noting that the victim has no ill motive to accuse the respondent and taking note of the mental and emotional anguish she suffered as a consequence.

Hernandez said Doringo has 15 days upon receipt of the resolution to file a motion for reconsideration. If the motion is denied, he may appeal the resolution before the DOJ.

The case is the second sex scandal that rocked the province in five years. The first broke out in June 2005 when a woman from the municipality of Maria Aurora filed a complaint against her former boyfriend and classmate who she accused of sending through the Short Messaging Service or through text a pornographic picture wherein her face was attached to a completely naked body of another woman.

The Regional Trial Court in this capital town found the man guilty of the offense charged. He appealed the case before the Court of Appeals which later affirmed the RTC decision and denied his motion for reconsideration. The Supreme Court also rejected the man’s appeal. (Jason de Asis)